24 April 2008
Palestinian State Remains Leading U.S. Priority, Says Bush
Tough negotiations remain, but two-state solution still possible
Washington -- Tough negotiations remain ahead for Palestinians and Israelis working for peace, but President Bush said he remains confident that the talks still can set the stage for a two-state solution by the end of his term in January 2009.
“The Palestinian state is a high priority for me and my administration,” Bush said April 24 as he welcomed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to the White House. “I'm confident we can achieve the definition of a state.”
In the meeting, Abbas updated Bush on ongoing peace talks with Israel and the prospects for a comprehensive peace settlement, as pledged at the November 2007 U.S.-sponsored Annapolis Conference.
“I believe it's in Israel’s interest and the Palestinian people's interest to have leaders willing to work toward the achievement of that state,” Bush said.
Bush visited Israel and the West Bank January 8-16 to bolster the intensive diplomatic effort begun late in 2007 with the Annapolis Middle East conference to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The diplomatic initiative is based on three parallel, but complementary, diplomatic tracks:
• peace talks between Palestinian and Israeli negotiators;
• U.S.-supervised implementation of a series of political and security measures defined in the Quartet “road map” developed by the United Nations, the European Union, Russia and the United States; and
• an international push led by former British Prime Minister and Quartet Special Representative Tony Blair to help the Palestinian Authority improve governance and deliver essential services in a future Palestinian state.
Since Annapolis, says White House spokeswoman Dana Perino, peace efforts have made only “halting progress,” marked both by setbacks, such as a brief suspension of talks following an Israeli response to rocket attacks from Hamas-controlled Gaza, as well as promising steps forward, such as Israel’s March 30 pledge to remove 50 roadblocks and ease the flow of goods and travelers between Israel and the West Bank.
“I believe very strongly that time is of the essence,” said Abbas. “We are working very hard in order not to waste any time and continue these efforts to achieve peace.”
Tensions remain high on many of the road map issues, says Perino, most notably continued development of Israeli settlements and outposts in the Occupied Territories.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and other senior U.S. diplomats have traveled several times to the region since Palestinian and Israeli leaders restarted talks. Rice was there most recently from March 28-31 during which she reiterated U.S. support for the ongoing talks toward establishing a Palestinian state that would live side by side with Israel in peace and security.
“I cannot say that the road to peace is paved with flowers; it is paved with obstacles,” Abbas said. “But together, we will work very hard in order to eliminate those obstacles and achieve peace.”
After travels to Africa and Europe in recent months, Bush began two days of intensive focus on Middle East peace, meeting first with Jordan’s King Abdullah II April 23. Visits from the Jordanian and Palestinian leaders are a prelude to Bush’s return to the region in May to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the founding of Israel, during which he also will travel to Saudi Arabia and Egypt.
“The thing that I'm focused on, and you are,” Bush said to Abbas, “is how to define a state that is acceptable to both sides. I'm confident it can get done.”
